An apparatus for axially slidably positioning a plurality of roll bearing supports guided in the housing windows of the stands of a multiroll rolling mill can comprise a plurality of guide members each mounted in at least one rigid supporting frame and each pivotable about an axis oriented transversely to the roll axis direction, a pair of traversing carriages guided in respective guide members which are then displaceable by a respectable lifting (jack-type) motor and coupling means for releasable engagement or linkage of the traversing carriages with the associated roll bearing supports.
With this apparatus with the help of the drive motors which provide the pivoting motion of the guide members pivotally mounted in the rigid supporting frame, the sliding force originating from the drive motor driving the traversing carriages is aligned directly on the center axis of the roll involved in every position of the roll held by the roll bearing support.
In the apparatus described in German Open Application DE-OS 35 25 462 the guide members for the traversing carriages associated with the roll bearing supports are pivoted on a common ridge supporting frame whose frame plane runs parallel to the rolling plane and the coupling means provided on the traversing carriages comprise a pair of clamp jaws or pincers mounted pivotally on the carriage transverse to the roll axle direction. The clamp jaws have hook-like clamp jaw ends insertable and withdrawable from suitable recesses of both sides in the roll bearing support.
This apparatus must comparatively wide since the inner open width of the supporting frame must correspond to the width of the housing window and the mechanism occupies the entire space behind the outer front surface of the roll bearing support outside of the roll stand and hinders access to the roll bearing support as well as the addition of other devices and units necessary for operation of these parts.
The apparatus thus can be used only for axially sliding of certain roll groups on the service side of a roll stand in which such hindrances and/or difficulties can be endured.
This apparatus is not usable on the driven side of the rolls since the supporting frame guide members and the traversing carriages would be located in the space required for the drive transmission elements.